I had corporate journalism career that brought me cover stories, international travel, professional accolades and control of a brand’s editorial direction, but I still felt like something was missing. The time I was spending in the wilderness to decompress and reconnect had increased, a lot, and with that the risks I was taking. I was committed on a solo 75-mile bikepacking trip in Utah’s San Rafael Swell, notorious for its lack of water, when I found myself tightening my cranks with my car key, which by luck turned the 8mm hex bolt I’d forgotten a tool for. Nothing takes you out of your own head like an emergency.
In the ensuing months, I rededicated myself to my passion projects, knocked the rust off my freelance career, started a book about dandelions and founded a nonprofit to look after the land where we live. I have always been a thinker and an idea person sharp with words, but now, with one hand in writing and the other hand in the actual dirt, I have achieved the right balance of thinking and action.
A person with an idea is a powerful thing. Inspiration is too. But to give an inspired person a tool and some training is to witness the transformative power of creativity.